Decent old age of service dogs: a Chinese dog handler has opened a shelter for retired dogs
The Chinese cynologist Bai Yan won the hearts of millions of Chinese: in seven years he spent about 150 thousand dollars on a nursing home for service dogs, where his "comrades-in-arms" could live their golden years in peace and quiet.
55-year-old Bai Yang has been working as a dog handler since 2004, during which time he has trained about 30 dogs. He spent most of his time with animals and managed to get attached to them. Seeing how the service dogs who were being retired were finishing, he realized that something had to be done.
A dog handler recently told Chinese media what exactly prompted him to open a nursing home. One day he saw an old service dog that the new owner had completely abandoned. She was lying in the mud, tied with a chain, and there was a bowl of spoiled food in front of her. Retired service dogs are often given to new owners who are not checked at all before that.
"I saw him chained at the front door next to a bowl of dry scraps. His fur was dirty and matted. I felt I had to act," recalled Bai Yang.
Another decisive factor in the decision to build a shelter was the refusal to listen to the advice of a veterinarian to euthanize a dog with skin cancer. Instead of going this way, Jan bathed Sonny the German Shepherd every day to keep her condition under control. This experience made him come to the conclusion that old dogs, like people, need daily care.
In 2010, Bai Yang rented a plot of land on the hilly outskirts of Hangzhou and turned it into a shelter for elderly service dogs. The dog handler visits the dogs three times a day. He wakes up at 4 o'clock in the morning to have time to feed them breakfast before going to work. Bai Yan always spends time with each dog separately, and every day he takes one of his former "colleagues" with him to work to entertain them a little.
"I'm doing this to make their last years of life happy. We have worked side by side for many years. They are my family and I will take care of them," Bai Yang said.
"They are my 'comrades in arms'. They are getting old, and I want them to spend their last years with dignity," the dog handler added. Not only does he spend most of his time with dogs, but he has spent about $150,000 over seven years on food and vet services. Some people offered him help and money, but Bai Yang refused, claiming that these dogs are his family and his responsibility.
Keywords: Kindness | Nursing home | Dog handlers | China | Dogs